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Can I drive my car with the engine light on?
The rule of thumb is that if the check engine light is flashing, you can’t keep driving the car. It’s an emergency. Often it indicates an engine misfire. If you keep driving, you will likely cause irreversible damage, mostly to the (expensive) catalytic converter.
What could cause a engine light to come on?
A problem with either your spark plug wires or the spark plugs themselves could cause your check engine light to come on. Ignoring this problem may lead to a clogged catalytic converter, damaged ignition coils, or problems with your oxygen sensor.
Should I be worried if my engine light is on?
Unlike a Temperature or Oil Pressure light, a Check Engine light is usually not an urgent, “Stop right now or you may cause permanent damage!” type of situation, unless it is flashing. If the check engine light is flashing, a more severe problem has occurred.
Can an oil change cause the check engine light to come on?
Oil changes are essential maintenance for your car but it won’t do anything that could trigger your check engine light to come on.
How long can you drive with check engine light flashing?
Depending on the issue that triggered the Check Engine light, you may be able to continue driving indefinitely or only for a couple of days. Covering a distance between 50 and 100 miles gives the engine computer time to recalibrate certain sensors, which may solve the problem.
Can low oil cause check engine light flash?
Low oil pressure: If your car is low on oil, it can cause your check engine light to go off. This is often shown in its own glowing light along with the check engine light on the dashboard. Overheating: If your car’s engine temperature is heating up, it can once again trigger the check engine light.
What does engine misfire feel like?
When a misfire occurs, you may feel like light or strong jerk coming from the engine. These misfires do often come under load from the engine, like when you are accelerating hard. The most common situation to notice misfires is on high gears, low RPM, and the accelerator to the floor.
What does the Check Engine light mean on a Dodge Neon?
A flashing check engine light is your Dodge Neon’s way of saying “I have a serious problem, don’t ignore me”. Most of the time, that serious problem is a misfire. This flashing light should not be ignored. When your engine is misfiring, it is dumping raw fuel into the exhaust.
What causes a Dodge Neon to misfire?
Keeping in mind that any engine needs air, fuel, and spark for ignition, your Dodge Neon’s fuel system can often cause the engine to misfire. It can run too lean or rich. Alternatively, there may not be enough fuel for proper combustion, or the fuel isn’t atomizing properly.
What does it mean when your check engine light blinks?
There can be other situations that can cause the check engine light to blink as well. It’s flashing to let you know that if you keep driving the vehicle, you are going to ruin the catalytic converter and/or damage the engine in a meaningful way.
What does the Check Engine light mean on a Honda Accord?
The check engine light is the result of a fuel/ignition/emissions fault detected by the vehicle’s ECM (engine control module). It can mean any one of over 1000 faults has occured. The only way to truly define the issue is to scan the ECM for the fault code.